Mona Lisa Smile

by Tam M. Tran, '17

Major: Communication, Media Production & Criticism

Demure, allusive, coy, and alluring are merely words of description used to describe the Mona Lisa. However, what if those were the words used to describe the characteristics of a woman? What kind of person would this woman be? Women are often under-represented in film and it is especially so when subtle qualities are the main focus. Usually it is through those representations that create the various perceived stereotypes of women. Mona Lisa Smile is a film that explores the subject of portrayal of women in the media and society. It centers on a woman who challenges and questions life, the world around her, and the people that she comes into contact with.

Mona Lisa Smile is a drama film that was written by Lawrence Konner and Mark Rosenthal. The film, released in December 19, 2003, was directed by Mike Newell and produced by Revolution Studio and Columbia Pictures along with Red Om Films Productions. Mona Lisa Smile stars Julia Roberts as Katherine Watson, Kirsten Dunst as Elizabeth “Betty” Warren, Julia Stiles as Joan Brandwyn, Maggie Gyllenhaal as Giselle Levy, and Ginnifer Goodwin as Constance “Connie” Baker (Goldsmith-Thomas & Newell, 2003).

Katherine Ann Watson is a graduate student who moves from California to Massachusetts to take a teaching position at Wellesley College as the new instructor of Art History for Fall of 1953. Wellesley College is widely known as a highly conservative private women’s college with prestige and traditions. Katherine, motivated at the prospective position, has a desire to teach at Wellesley College with aspirations to make a difference. She aspires to cultivate the brightest women of the nation into leaders. However upon arrival to Wellesley College, she is shocked by the culture and traditions that surrounds the school. The college was the kind of school that instead of nurturing and expanding the intellect of young minds, it offered classes in grooming, table setting, and etiquette. It was more of a boarding school for training future wives and brides. The school had strict rules and regulations but perhaps what intimidated her most was the capable intellect of the young women that attended her Art History class.

On the first day of class, Katherine tries her best to hide her feelings of intimidation and fear but was soon overwhelmed. She soon realizes that every young woman in her class have read the entirety of the course’s textbook as well as suggested supplements and is quite familiar with the art pieces that she has planned for her lecture. It seems as though the students were challenging her and making a specific point that they were “the elite of the elite” by being able to identify all the paintings that she prepared. Although she was stunned speechless and visibly unsettled, she was determined to teach. She discards the entire planned syllabus and uses the opportunity to introduce modern art.

Being a modern woman, Katherine questions and challenges the girls into asking what defines art. She encourages the students to interpret the painting of Carcass, painted by Soutine. The first question she asks: “Is it any good? There’s no wrong answer. There’s also no textbook telling you what to think”. The painting invokes confusion among the students making them admit that Carcass is not art because “something so grotesque” cannot be art if there is no traditional or classic beauty. This is where some disagreement arises among the students. Some reasoned that art have certain standards to the composition, the subject, as well as the colors used. Conversely, other students deviated from the idea and were able to accept that even something unpleasant and horrid can also be a form of art. This allows for Katherine to express the concept of considering all forms of art even if an artwork appeals to an individual’s feelings of revulsion and aversion.

The main point in questioning the students acts as a framework for outlining Katherine’s plans for the 1953-1954 school term. She wants them to understand questions corresponding to what is art, what determines the merit of an art piece, and who are the critics that decide when something is art. There is a scene between Betty and Katherine where Betty is in disagreement about a child’s painting being art:

KATHERINE 25 years ago, someone thought that this was brilliant.

BETTY Who?

KATHERINE My mother. I painted it for her birthday.

BETTY Art isn’t art until someone says it is.

KATHERINE It’s art!

BETTY The right people.

KATHERINE Who are they?

(Goldsmith-Thomas & Newell, 2003)

I personally feel that this is one of the most intellectually stimulating scenes in the movie. This scene depicts a room full of academically intelligent women beginning their creative inquiry into modern art. The movie had the female characters asking themselves if artists had intent or expression within an artwork. There is also another scene where the characters go to see the uncrating of an art piece by Jackson Pollock. The camera moves over the Jackson Pollock so the audience can see the rough textures, colors, hues, and shadows created as natural light shines down from above. By having the camera close in on the art piece, it gave me a sense of an intimate, marveling sensation that allows me to momentarily forget I am watching a film through a screen. These are the scenes that make me, as a viewer, feel that there is more substance to the film than it being a “chick-flick” filled with stunningly attractive award-winning starlets. A female lead implementing the idea of other female individuals being observers capable of looking beyond the obvious and opening their minds to new ideas is not something seen done often in films.

There may be those that would describe Mona Lisa Smile falling under the genre of being a “chick flick” appealing to feminism. Typical “chick-flick” films involve themes of dramatic love and romance, which usually centers on the romantic endeavors of the lead characters. However in Mona Lisa Smile, love and romance in this film is not a theme that is at the forefront. Instead it depicts an individual who chooses to defy society conventions. It may be a film filled with female characters, but in my opinion the movie does not stress female empowerment. It gives more emphasis on individual thought, individual empowerment, and the notion of transcending a society mold.

In film, women often being under-represented give rise to stereotypes. Media Smarts states “We all know the stereotypes—the femme fatale, the supermom, the sex kitten, the nasty corporate climber. Whatever the role, television, film, and popular magazines are full of images of women and girls who are typically white, desperately thin, and made up to the hilt—even after slaying a gang of vampires or dressing down a Greek phalanx”. The type of gender bias that media has towards women can sometimes degrade and have negative effects. This is because sometimes art does not emulate life, but it is life that imitates art; which in this case is film. This could be best understood by looking at the relationship between media and effects on viewers.

A theory that applies to the relationship between media and viewers is the social learning theory. Ralph E. Hanson (2003) states that the social learning theory is the process in which people “learn by observing what others do and the consequences they face” (p.38). This indicates that the media can simultaneously create as well as justify perceived conceptions. One of the prevalent misconceptions that media created is a woman’s body image. The image of a woman’s body is ideal if she is generously proportioned yet slender and sensual. Film and media often represents women as a commodity to men, meaning the more beauty she possesses, the more attention she will receive. Think about the leading lady who gains the attention of an attractive man by enhancing her assets and features. Having a slender frame and revealing attire to accentuate proves to be a fruitful approach which usually invokes admiration and devotion in a man. Therefore this creates negative effects where female individuals watching film may make direct correlations and reason that physical beauty is an effective way in resolving esteem and social recognition issues.

Another method of understanding women’s presence in film is through the Bechdel Test for Women in Film. Hanson (2003) states that the Bechdel Test

“attempts to test whether women have a meaningful presence in a movie. It does so by asking three questions: 1) Are there two or more women who have names in the movie? 2) Do they talk to each other? 3) Do they talk to each other about something other than a man?” (p. 195)

It is surprising to say that these are the only criteria in evaluating if women have meaningful major roles. There are no strict indicators and I have to say that the standards are relatively simple. However it is even more surprising of the amount of films that do not pass the test. The Bechdel test does not stress on the depth or breadth of topics but only if it passes the conditions in the simplest manner. For example: If Jane Doe A talks to Jane Doe B a few minutes about potatoes, then the film passes the test. In my opinion, I think that this is discouraging and disheartening. Mona Lisa Smile is among the few films that not only confronts the topic of the perception of women in the media but also an exceeding example of measuring merit. The film has topics concerning art, occupation, education, society, identity, and culture among other subjects.

Perhaps what makes Mona Lisa Smile interesting is the insinuation of Katherine being the modern Mona Lisa. Although Katherine’s character has rare qualities for a female during the 1950s, she is simple yet enigmatic. There is no definite answer as to whether she is lonely or content, tempting or hiding. In my personal opinion, I think Julia Roberts gave life to a character that is not only marvelous but also mysterious. I think that upon watching the film, the greatest question that many will attempt to answer is: is she warm and real, or is she like the Mona Lisa, a cold and lonely work of art. Despite what reactions this film might provoke, this movie allows for the audience to see a new facet of representing women being not only capable of thought, but also as an inspiration.

References:

Goldsmith-Thomas, E. (Producer), & Newell, M. (Director). (2003). Mona Lisa Smile [Motion

picture]. United States: Red Om Films.

Hanson, Ralph E. (2013): Mass Communication Living in a Media World. CQ Press.

Media Portrayals of Girls & Women: Introduction. Media Smarts: Canada’s centre for digital &

media literacy. Retrieved from http://mediasmarts.ca/gender-representation/women-and-

girls/media-portrayals-girls-and-women-introduction